Dallas College Receives CUPA-HR’s HR Innovation Award

Media Contact: Dallas College News Team; Newsteam@dallascollege.edu

For immediate release — July 1, 2026

Dallas College Receives CUPA-HR’s HR Innovation Award

Dallas College has received a College and University Professional Association for Human Resources (CUPA-HR) 2026 HR Innovation Award for its talent acquisition transformation and AI-enabled talent ecosystem.

The HR Innovation Award recognizes innovative thinking in higher education HR, especially models that can be adapted for use on other campuses. CUPA-HR is pleased to make a $5,000 contribution to Dallas College in recognition of the award.

As one of the largest higher education systems in Texas, Dallas College realized the need for a unified talent acquisition model that would support institutional success while being scalable across multiple campuses and aligned with institutional priorities. The new model was implemented in a phased approach that focused on a design-first transformation model to ensure that processes were standardized across all campuses before introducing technology. Once the foundations of the new model were solidified, technology innovations were introduced through governed AI-enhanced processes including interview scheduling and video assessments, in addition to an AI-enabled CRM platform that enhanced the hiring process for candidates, recruiters and hiring managers. As a result of these changes, the college has seen a 682% increase in candidate volume while simultaneously reclaiming over 10,000 hours of staff time. Dallas College’s new talent acquisition model has successfully transformed the hiring process from a reactive, transaction-based system into a key driver of institutional success.

For the innovative ways Dallas College transformed their talent acquisition model, CUPA-HR is pleased to award the institution a 2026 HR Innovation Award.

About Dallas College 

Celebrating its 60th anniversary in 2025, Dallas College consists of seven campuses — Brookhaven, Cedar Valley, Eastfield, El Centro, Mountain View, North Lake and Richland — plus a dozen centers located throughout Dallas County. As one of the largest community colleges in the U.S., Dallas College offers online and in-person learning, serving more than 127,000 credit, workforce and continuing education students annually. Students benefit from partnerships with local school districts, four-year universities, industry and community leaders. Dallas College offers associate degrees and career/technical certificate programs in more than 100 areas of study, as well as bachelor’s degrees in education, nursing, software development and management. As the largest provider of dual credit in Texas, Dallas College serves 30,000 high school students through 63 dual credit programs. 

About CUPA-HR

CUPA-HR is higher ed HR. We serve higher education by providing the knowledge, resources, advocacy and connections to achieve organizational and workforce excellence. Serving more than 23,000 HR professionals and other higher ed leaders at more than 1,700 member organizations around the country and abroad, the association offers learning and professional development programs, higher education salary, benefits and demographic data, extensive online resources and just-in-time regulatory and legislative information.

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